The distance from the bridge to the pharmacy wasn't far.
Yet it still took quite a while to get there.
Thanks to the fight with the goblins.
And the journey from here all the way to Gangbuk? That was bound to be even worse.
This wasn't something you could measure just by distance.
So I needed to talk things over with Jang Ho-seop again.
I'd already shown him a glimpse of my true self, after all.
"What are you going to do, Jang Ho-seop?"
"Um... could I come with you?"
"You've watched me for a full day now. You know what kind of person I am... I'm a little different."
I no longer had any intention of killing Jang Ho-seop.
And I'd confirmed his abilities would be useful.
"Yeah... a bit strange... no, unique."
"And you're still saying you want to follow me?"
I looked into Jang Ho-seop's eyes.
He hesitated for a moment before spilling his true feelings.
"When I first saw you kill those people... it was horrifying. I thought I had to run."
Jang Ho-seop had originally tried to hide.
But he'd gotten caught by my Target Detection.
"Now I get it. You weren't killing them out of kindness... There must have been a reason."
Jang Ho-seop had a strange knack for asking the right questions.
He knew exactly which ones I could answer and which ones I wouldn't want to.
"I still want to stick with you, hyung-nim. Truth is, I have a favor to ask."
As expected, he had his own agenda.
"What kind of favor?"
"Please save my mom. She works at a hospital..."
Jang Ho-seop was proposing a deal.
"I think you could save her, hyung-nim. That's why I said I'd stay by your side."
"What's in it for me?"
"Just save my mom, and I'll work like a dog for you. I mean it—I want to be your right-hand man."
It was a favorable deal for me.
I had to head to a hospital anyway.
And the one where his mom worked was right on the route to Hangang Bridge.
'The odds of her still being alive are slim.'
As I fell silent for a moment, Jang Ho-seop spoke up again.
"Please. She's all the family I have."
His added words brought back a memory from the past.
What my own mother had said to me when she sent her husband away.
'Son, now it's just you and me.'
No particular emotions stirred in me.
I just figured his mom must mean the world to him.
"Fine. Which hospital? Wait, no..."
"Yes?"
"Which hospital? I'm switching to casual speech now."
Jang Ho-seop's eyes widened.
Tears welled up in them.
"Thank you! Hyung-nim... snff... thank you!"
I didn't particularly want to watch a grown man cry, so I turned my head away.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
We stayed one more day at the pharmacy building.
In that time, we gathered supplies and planned our crossing of the Hangang River.
Food, spare clothes, blankets, all sorts of useful tools.
We even found gas masks at the subway station.
Now it was time to go.
"Oppa... can't we just stay here together until the rescue teams come?"
A woman in tracksuit grabbed my arm.
She was one of the awakened survivors at the pharmacy, in her twenties.
I shook my head and gently pushed her away.
"Then take this... if things get better, call me."
She handed me a slip of paper.
A phone number was written on it.
I took it without another word.
As the woman stepped back, the pharmacist spoke up next.
"It's a shame. I'd love to keep you here. If we wait for rescue together..."
As we exchanged goodbyes, everyone looked at me with eyes full of reluctance.
They all seemed to want me to stay.
No one mentioned the three slit-eyed guys.
"You need treatment, so no choice. I hope you make it to the hospital safely."
"Thanks."
They were still clinging to the hope that rescue teams would come.
Just as I'd taken the woman's number without comment, I said nothing about their hopes.
'I dropped some hints already.'
Jang Ho-seop and I were now almost certain the world had ended.
Thanks to his Fundamental Skill.
⚙ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ⚙Veiled Administrator
This was Jang Ho-seop's Fundamental Skill.
Invisibility was just a secondary ability; the main one was something else.
Jang Ho-seop could access information directly through the System.
He'd ask questions, and the System would answer.
Of course, there were still plenty of restrictions on what info he could get.
"Well then, we're off."
After our final goodbyes, Jang Ho-seop and I set out.
We'd gathered enough supplies that they should hold out for a while.
"Hyung-nim. Um... shouldn't we tell them about the info we confirmed?"
"I mentioned it earlier. Beat around the bush, but they seemed to get it."
A short distance from the pharmacy building.
Jang Ho-seop spoke in a worried tone.
"Ah..."
"It's been three days already. Even without your skill, everyone's starting to think something's off."
"Yeah. Guess they just want to believe it."
We might be the reckless ones.
To those people, heading out in this situation might look like we had a death wish.
"Everyone makes their own choices."
"Right. And I chose you, hyung-nim."
There didn't seem to be any right answers.
Everyone had to find their own path to survival.
With that thought, I tossed the slip of paper from the woman.
"Huh? Isn't that Jung-hye's number?"
"Yeah."
"Why throw it away...?"
"No point. We won't be able to contact anyone anyway."
Jang Ho-seop eyed the discarded paper with regret.
"Still, you never know."
"It's fine. I don't need it."
"What a waste... First time I've seen a girl give her number to a guy..."
He even stopped walking.
Why regret something so pointless?
"I've got standards too."
"Huh? Oh..."
I nudged his shoulder, and he finally started walking again.
"This is why all the good-looking ones need to die..."
Jang Ho-seop muttered under his breath.
"I heard that."
"What? Ah... heh heh. Just a joke, hyung-nim. You know that, right?"
I knew he didn't mean it.
Still, I kept a straight face and said nothing.
"Hyung-nim? Really, I was just kidding. You see that stuff on the internet sometimes..."
His flustered excuses were a little amusing.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
A downpour had come and gone, but the sky was still blanketed in dark clouds.
Jang Ho-seop and I trudged silently through the gloomy atmosphere.
"Let's head back."
"Got it."
We'd considered multiple routes before setting out.
This was why.
Monsters, collapsed buildings, ruined roads, and more.
That day—the day of the 'Great Cataclysm,' as Jang Ho-seop put it.
After the cataclysm, all the human-made paths had lost their meaning.
Our pace was slower than planned as a result.
"Woof! Woof!"
As we detoured around some hard-to-climb building debris,
a dog's bark suddenly rang out.
"Huh?"
Jang Ho-seop lit up at the sound, even though his mask hid everything but his eyes.
"Shh."
I signaled him to prepare for battle and quickly climbed the rubble of a collapsed apartment.
From a certain height, I could see the chaotic state of Olympic-daero.
"Woof! Woof! Woof!"
It really was a mess.
Not just the broken and cluttered road.
Tap tap.
I dropped down and signaled Jang Ho-seop that monsters were present.
I pulled out a notepad and wrote:
—Dog heads? Monsters. About 30 of them.
I was sure they were monsters because they were all walking upright.
Jang Ho-seop's eyes went wide.
Then he wrote below my note:
—Gnoll
—Gnoll?
—No. Monster name's 'Gnoll,' I think.
We'd probably have to take a bigger detour.
Too many of them.
No info on what they were either.
—Let's bail.
I pocketed the notepad and turned to retrace our steps.
"Woof! Woof!"
But the barking was getting closer.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
We'd been spotted.
A few gnolls were sniffing the air and heading our way.
Even from this distance, they zeroed in on our direction—must have keen senses of smell.
"Grrrrrrooowf!"
The lead one barked loudly.
That was the signal.
"Hoooowl!"
"Haaaooowl!"
The gnoll pack let out strange howls.
This wasn't dog barking.
More like a cow's moo, but thinner and higher-pitched.
"Hyung-nim!"
"Head for the Byeol-da-bang intersection."
"Got it!"
We retreated the way we'd come.
If we had to fight, familiar terrain was better, even if just a little.
I matched my pace to Jang Ho-seop's as we ran.
I glanced back now and then.
'Not as fast as I thought.'
The gnolls kept to bipedal running.
"Slow it down a bit."
"Huff... huff... okay."
Just 30 seconds in, and Jang Ho-seop was already gasping.
We had some breathing room, so I adjusted our pace.
"What's with your stamina?"
"It's just... huff... I'm an... office worker type..."
We'd prepared several contingency plans for monster encounters.
Depending on their numbers, size, special traits, and so on.
The problem was that all monsters were still unfamiliar.
Split-second judgment calls were key.
As we ran, I tried to analyze the gnolls' visible traits.
'Small size.'
Gnolls were bigger than goblins but smaller than orcs.
Especially their heads—massive, with huge mouths.
Looked like powerful biters.
'And they use tools.'
It was chilling to see them wielding various weapons.
Some clutched stones, others bats.
Upright posture, hands capable of gripping.
And running speed that wasn't all that fast.
'Like apes? They look like dogs, though...'
I pondered as I observed the gnolls.
First decision: fight or not?
'Need to get closer for Target Detection.'
Target Detection let me gauge their energy levels.
Knowing that would help decide whether to engage.
At this running speed, I could probably close in.
But their intelligence seemed high, so caution was needed.
"Huff... huff..."
Jang Ho-seop looked overwhelmed just from running.
No help from him, it seemed. I was debating slowing down alone when—
"Woof! Woof!"
The biggest gnoll barked like a dog again.
Then, abruptly, the pack gave up the chase.
"Kee-hee-heeek!"
"Kek kek kek."
Tongues lolling long, they came to a halt.
Now they made a giggling, mocking sound.
It felt like they were laughing at our escape.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
The gnoll pack turned back.
The largest one, likely the leader, watched us warily from the rear.
"Definitely a pack mentality."
"Huh? Huff... huff..."
"They've got a command structure. That big one's the leader."
I pulled a water bottle from my backpack and handed it to Jang Ho-seop.
He took it sheepishly and drank.
My pack was much bigger and heavier than his.
Even though he was lighter on his feet, he felt embarrassed at tiring faster.
The reason I carried more was his invisibility.
Packs over a certain size blocked it.
Plus, stamina considerations.
"Ahh... Hyung-nim, looks like those things have crap stamina."
"Seems that way."
"Yeah. Worse than mine, even."
The gnolls trudging away didn't look like they were faking it.
No reason to deceive us.
From what we'd seen so far, monsters viewed humans as prey.
So the pack had simply given up on us.
"What now?"
Now we had options.
Abandon Olympic-daero, held by the gnolls, and backtrack.
Or fight the pack.
"I want to test fighting them."
Jang Ho-seop nodded.
"Makes sense... Giving up this route means a huge detour."
No telling what monsters lurked on other paths.
And the gnolls seemed worth a shot.
"Their heads are huge. Arms are short."
"Whoa... you noticed that much?"
Surprised Jang Ho-seop.
I shared what I'd observed.
"Not just big—their heads are so oversized it looks like they struggle for balance. Probably burns a ton of energy there."
The gnolls' heads were so massive they looked like 3- or 4-head proportions.
Short arms and bipedal to boot.
"Sudden direction changes probably aren't their strong suit... but if they bite, we're in trouble."
"Could be."
Of course, as monsters, all this speculation might be pointless.
"Let's prepare. We can check it out."
"Right. Lure and strike, yeah?"
"Yeah."
To survive, avoid risks.
But long-term, leveling up to grow stronger was the path to survival.
So we had to take calculated risks when potential showed, like now.
"And those things... they had a bunch of people with them."
"Really?"
"Yeah. Saw it when I first spotted them."
Jang Ho-seop and I quickly hashed out a battle plan.
Picked a spot favorable to us, secured an escape route for worst-case.
"Going in."
"Be careful."
Then I left Jang Ho-seop behind and headed to the gnoll pack alone.
They were gathered in the same spot as before.
"Kee-hee-heeek!"
As I approached, the pack giggled like earlier.
But they showed no sign of moving—just noise.
I got closer.
"Kee-heek."
Waiting for me to enter their range?
The leader gnoll stood and approached a captive human.
Crunch.
It chomped the person's head whole.
A threat or provocation, probably.
"Ridiculous."
I couldn't help but smirk at the leader gnoll.
Their energy felt just a bit stronger than goblins'.
Rustle.
I pulled out a prepared metal shard and hurled it at the leader with all my strength.
It hit dead on.
"Woof! Woof!"
The excited gnolls charged.
My heart pounded.